Business Intelligence Analyst

A business intelligence analyst is one of the few positions in IT that’s
in demand. Many companies are looking to expand their BI
implementations, and that means more headcount is needed in those areas.
The positions can be tough to fill, as they require a mix of business
and technical experience.

This role lies between the typical business analyst and more
technical data architect, although many of the same skillsets are
needed. They are a dedicated resource for the BI teams to bridge the
gaps between the end users and the technical resources. They need to be
able to take end user requirements and translate them to the technical
teams. Industry experience can definitely be helpful here. In most
companies, the analyst would report to either business or IT, so your
experience level would swing to either more business focused or
technical focused. In some instances, the analyst reports to both
sides.

In smaller companies, a worker may have to wear this hat
part time, working on BI a portion of the time while working on other
software initiatives when not needed. These are usually simpler,
reporting only type projects. In larger enterprises, this role usually
is full-time due to the scope and visibility of business intelligence.

If
you’re looking to move or apply for an analyst position, know that good
experience is the best driver of opportunities in this field.

The
pay can vary quite a bit depending on experience and the role and size
of the company. You can usually see pay of $50000 on the low end of the
spectrum, to up to the high $90K range for an experienced employee.
Bigger companies with more extensive deployments will generally be able
to pay more. Industry experience can be valuable as well, especially
for highly regulated industries like defense or banking.